The present invention relates to an apparatus for reconditioning used motor oil and used transmission fluid in a motor vehicle and, more particularly, to such an apparatus which extracts the fluid or oil from the drivetrain components of a vehicle, delivers it to a reconditioning unit which removes contaminants therefrom and discharges the fluid or oil directly (back) into the vehicle for reuse thereby.
Automobile manufacturers and automotive experts advise motor vehicle owners that frequent oil changes i.e., approximately every few thousand miles, is one of the best ways to assure that the vehicle's engine lasts a long time with minimal repairs. However, changing the motor oil of a motor vehicle is typically a messy and troublesome job for a motor vehicle owner. The oil change job requires the owner to remove the crankcase drain plug which typically entails the owner crawling under the vehicle into a typically cramped area where he may come into contact with the vehicle underside which is covered with road dirt, grime, grease and oil all of which are likely to get on his clothing, skin, eyes, etc. The oil change job is also time consuming because the oil takes a long time to drain completely out of the crankcase. In addition, it takes a long time to pour the oil into the engine through the oil filler a quart at a time with every quart container completely emptied out. In addition to these undesireable aspects of this job, after the job is over there remains the question of what to do with the used oil. Frequently, the oil pan into which the oil has drained is unsuitable for transporting the oil to a recycling center. Consequently, the used oil must be transferred to another container, and this may be messy and time consuming as well as generally a hassle. Also, transporting the used oil to the recycling center not only adds to the time cost for the job but may also involve spillage onto the trunk floor or onto the transporter's clothing. The only other alternative to this is getting the oil change performed at an oil change center, but this may require that the owner sit in the car and wait in line for the vehicle to be taken care of. In addition, the owner must drive to the oil change center which may be a long distance from the owner or be open for business at inconvenient hours. Thus, changing the oil is a maintenance job that is undesirable for both the do-it-yourself owner as well as the owner who pays another to do the job.
Automobile manufacturers and automotive experts also advise that changing the transmission fluid regularly will substantially prolong the useful life of the transmission. However, most automobile owners skimp on this job because automatic transmissions lack a drain plug which requires that the oil pan be detached and because they do not believe that changing the fluid of a transmission is important. In addition, changing the fluid of an automatic transmission is not very effective because there typically is no effective way to drain the fluid out of the torque converter with the result that a substantial amount of contaminated fluid remains in the transmission even after a fluid change. Consequently, there is not a great deal of benefit to be derived from changing the transmission fluid. Although manual transmissions have a drain plug, the oil drain plug is usually somewhat inaccessible and filling the transmission requires special equipment or fittings making changing the oil frequently messy and time consuming.
There have been numerous devices and systems which have been designed to expedite the job of changing the oil of a motor vehicle. Two examples of such systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,384,660 to Bedi and U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,154 to Sage. The Bedi system provides a high speed oil change and additionally flushes the used oil out of the oil pan. Both the Bedi and the Sage systems require that a special tube and coupling be attached to the oil pan. The Bedi system has both fill and drain hoses and also flushes the oil pan with a solvent for cleaning thereof and is very effective in draining and flushing the crankcase of used oil and filling it with new oil. But, these systems are not applicable to motor vehicle transmissions. Both the Bedi and the Sage systems have an important disadvantage which is that the requirement of special coupling and tube requires permanent or semi-permanent modification of the engine. Thus, these systems cannot be used on any motor vehicle but instead must be used only on those that have been specially modified.
Other systems have been designed to recycle the used motor oil. An example of such a system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,278 to Henderson. The Henderson system removes used oil from the vehicle oil pan and filters out particulates and pumps the oil into the fuel where it is mixed therewith. The oil is filtered only to prevent clogging of the fuel filters or the fuel injector nozzles etc. and not to make the oil reusable as a lubricant. The Henderson system requires a special three-way valve attached to the filter hose. Essentially, the purpose of the Henderson system is to burn used oil. In addition, this system requires that a valve be inserted into the drain plug opening for removal of used oil from the oil pan. A primary disadvantage of the Henderson system is that it requires that new oil be put into the motor and does not recondition the oil for reuse in the motor.
Other oil change systems have been designed for portability. An example of such a system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,552,749 to Tabet. The Tabet system has a tube which is inserted into the measuring stick opening of the motor and the motor oil is pumped out therethrough. New oil is put into the motor via other means. The Tabet system is also mounted on wheels to enable it to be quickly moved to any vehicle and thereby enable it to quickly take care of many motor vehicles. However, a primary disadvantage of the Tabet system is that it does not allow new oil to be put into the motor via the measuring stick opening and is thus not generally expeditious.
Thus, what is needed is an apparatus that is capable of quickly draining and refilling motor vehicle drivetrain fluids including motor oil and transmission fluid effectively and efficiently without the necessity of modifying the motor vehicle. What is also needed is such an apparatus that reconditions the used fluid thereby rendering it suitable for reuse. In addition, what is need is such an apparatus that pumps the reconditioned fluid directly into the vehicle immediately after it is reconditioned.